ALUMINUM SESQUICHLOROHYDRATE
Aluminum sesquichlorohydrate is an aluminum salt used in products applied to the underarms. It contains aluminum, chloride, and hydroxide groups, placing it among the aluminum salts used to reduce perspiration at the application site.
ALUMINUM SESQUICHLOROHYDRATE: what it is
Aluminum sesquichlorohydrate is an aluminum salt used in products applied to the underarms. It contains aluminum, chloride, and hydroxide groups, placing it among the aluminum salts used to reduce perspiration at the application site.
Its similar name does not make it the same substance as aluminum chloride or aluminum chlorohydrate. The proportion of its components differs, which affects how the salt is incorporated into lotions, roll-ons, sticks, or aerosols. Seeing aluminum sesquichlorohydrate on a label points to this class of antiperspirant active rather than to a fragrance ingredient.
ALUMINUM SESQUICHLOROHYDRATE: what it does in cosmetics
In an antiperspirant, aluminum sesquichlorohydrate helps reduce the amount of sweat that reaches the underarm surface. In practical terms, that action is intended to keep the area less damp; it is different from simply adding fragrance or masking odor. United States rules define an antiperspirant as a topical product that reduces sweat production at the site where it is applied.
An eight-week randomized clinical trial compared lotions containing 20% of this salt with 20% aluminum chloride in 20 adults with primary axillary hyperhidrosis; both treatments reduced the sweat measures used in that group. That finding concerns a particular concentration, routine, and clinical condition, so it cannot predict the effect of every consumer deodorant or antiperspirant.
ALUMINUM SESQUICHLOROHYDRATE: conditions and care
In the United States, over-the-counter antiperspirants containing aluminum sesquichlorohydrate may contain up to 25% of the active ingredient, calculated on an anhydrous basis. Labeling for this use says not to apply it to broken skin, to stop use if rash or irritation occurs, and to ask a doctor before use in case of kidney disease.
Products containing this ingredient
See which products include it and the name used in each composition.
